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This Week's Feature
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The Importance of Defining ‘Defective’ for Practitioners of Strict Products Liability
By Marc A. Altenbernt
Cassiday Schade LLP, Libertyville, Illinois
Perhaps no issue in strict products liability litigation has received more attention, and caused more debate, than the definition of “defective.” One notable commentator found it to be “the most vexing and pressing problem of products liability” law. Wade, On Product “Design Defects” And Their Actionability, 33 VAND.L.REV. 551 (1980). This debate is reflected in the various methods formulated by courts to determine whether a product suffers from a design defect.
[FULL STORY]
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DRI News
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National Foundation for Judicial Excellence
2009 SYMPOSIUM FILLS IN RECORD TIME!
On March 25, 2009, the NFJE opened registration for its Fifth Annual Judicial Symposium, Mapping the Legal Frontier: The Uncertain Boundary Between Federal and State Law. Within 72 hours of its opening, 70% of available seats had been filled. When the symposium reached capacity just 10 days later, a wait list was started. Already, there are 15 judges on a wait list to attend this summer’s symposium.
[FULL STORY]
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Spread the Word! DRI’s 2009 Law Student Diversity Scholarship
The Law Student Diversity Scholarship program is open to incoming second- and third-year African American, Hispanic, Asian, Pan Asian and Native American students. Incoming second- and third-year female law students are also eligible, regardless of race or ethnicity. Two scholarships in the amount of $10,000 each will be awarded to successful applicants. The application and all other requested material must be received by May 8, 2009. To download the scholarship application, click here.
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Upcoming DRI Elections
Four new Director Elected Nationally seats on the DRI Board of Directors, plus the office of Second Vice President, will be filled at the 2009 Annual Meeting in Chicago, October 7-11. To be considered for either position, a DRI member must first file a Declaration of Candidacy form. For more information, please contact Nancy Parz at DRI headquarters: nparz@dri.org or 312.698.6224. Declarations are due by July 1, 2009.
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Congratulations to Lynn M. Roberson, a partner with Swift, Currie, McGhee & Hiers, LLP in Atlanta, Georgia, who has been elected to the position of treasurer of the Atlanta Bar for 2009-2010. An active DRI member since 1985, Ms. Roberson currently serves as the state representative for Georgia. She is a past chair of DRI’s Trial Tactics Committee and a former member of DRI’s Task Force on Judicial Independence.
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The Burton Award for Legal Achievement, Distinguished Legal Writing Award, 2009
Congratulations to Ryan Nilsen and Mike Carey of the Minneapolis office of Bowman and Brooke, recipients of the 2009 Burton Award for Legal Writing Achievement! Their article, “Defending Lead-Containing Toy Lawsuits,” was published in For The Defense, February 2008. The Burton Award is a unique national awards program dedicated principally to rewarding effective legal writing. The program honors partners in law firms who use plain, clear and concise language and avoid archaic, stilted legalese. Each year, only 30 authors are selected out of the entries submitted by the nation's 1,000 largest law firms. This year's recognition marks the third in a row for Bowman and Brooke. Past honorees include George Soule and Ken Ross in 2007 and Sandra Giannone Ezell in 2008.
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Drug and Medical Device Seminar
May 14-15, 2009
Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers
New York, New York
DRI’s 25th annual Drug and Medical Device Seminar provides the perfect opportunity to hear and learn about many of the key litigation issues currently facing the industry and its counsel while networking with peers and clients and enjoying springtime in the Big Apple! The stakes in pharmaceutical and medical device litigation have become even more substantial and the issues more complex as the litigation has evolved. Today’s pharmaceutical and medical device litigation commonly involves a mass tort spanning many countries and involving multiple types of claims. This year’s program will continue the tradition of providing compelling individual presentations, stimulating panel debates and educational trial skills demonstrations on the hottest topics and issues in drug and device litigation. Click here to register or call 312.795.1101 for more information!
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Order Your Copy Today!
Trucking Policyholder’s Obligation to Preserve Coverage is a compendium of the law of all 50 states dealing with trucking law disclaimers and the policyholder’s obligations to preserve coverage. A project of the DRI Trucking Law Committee, this publication describes each state’s law and procedure. The chapter authors are experienced lawyers who regularly practice in the fields of trucking law and insurance law.
[FULL STORY]
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And The Defense Wins!
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DRI member L. Johnson Sarber III, a shareholder with Marks Gray, P.A. in Jacksonville, Florida, recently obtained a complete defense verdict in favor of the firm’s client, a bus company and its driver insured by a national transportation insurance carrier.
[FULL STORY]
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DRI member James R. Studnicka of Haynes, Studnicka, Kahan, O’Neill & Poulakidas, LLC in Chicago recently obtained a not guilty verdict in a claimed closed head injury case against a retail grocery operator in Jacobsen v. Albertson’s, Inc., Jewel Food Stores, Inc., American Drug Stores, Inc. and American Stores Company, LLC. (Case no. 04 L 628 Will County, Illinois, tried November 17-19, 2008).
[FULL STORY]
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DRI member Linda G. Burwell, a partner with Detroit employment law firm Nemeth Burwell, P.C., announces an appellate court decision affirming summary judgment dated January 20, 2009 in favor of the defendant, Autoform. The case involved a long-term Autoform employee who had filed multiple claims for workers’ compensation benefits.
[FULL STORY]
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DRI member Esther Holm, a partner with Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP in Costa Mesa, California, teamed with another partner recently to secure an appellate victory for defendants and respondents Feng Ling Jing and Linda A. Lee, d/b/a Jubilee Insurance Services. (Roberts v. Assurance (2008) 163 CA4th 1398) Plaintiff Roberts, who had purchased a lot in Anaheim to build a home, submitted an application for insurance to the broker, Jubilee, requesting course of construction insurance, but not liability insurance. Shortly after the policy was issued, Jubilee issued a certificate of liability insurance which referenced a commercial general liability policy, which Roberts claimed confirmed he had liability insurance. Jubilee maintained that this referred to an insurance policy issued to the general contractor, not Roberts. Roberts also contended that the broker had admitted in her deposition that Roberts had requested liability coverage.
[FULL STORY]
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A Miami-Dade County jury sided with Quintairos, Prieto, Wood & Boyer, P.A. (QPWB) trial attorneys David M. Tarlow, managing partner of the Ft. Lauderdale office, and a founding partner of the firm, Edward C. Prieto, of the Miami office, when the jury returned a defense verdict finding no negligence on the part of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. On September 30, 2004, the plaintiff alleged that a moving pallet jack, fully loaded with merchandise, struck her from behind. The stacked pallet, being steered by a Wal-Mart employee, prevented unobstructed visibility and collided with her.
[FULL STORY]
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Keep those defense wins coming! Send a short summary and recent photo of yourself to Barb Lowery by email (blowery@dri.org).
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Leader Spotlight
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This week’s leader is John C. S. Pierce, a partner with the Mobile, Alabama office of Butler Pappas. His practice focuses on litigation and appeals in a variety of areas, including construction litigation, heavy equipment, trucking, aviation, product liability and health care.
[FULL STORY]
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Legislative Tracking
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Fueled by DRI’s Young Lawyers Committee, this week’s report highlights legislation from Alabama through Minnesota. The Young Lawyers Legislative Subcommittee is led by co-chairs Emily Turner Landry of Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz, PC in Memphis, Tennessee and Sean W. Shirley of Balch & Bingham LLP in Birmingham, Alabama, plus vice-chair Paul A. Wilhelm of Dykema Gossett PLLC in Detroit, Michigan. Special thanks to these leaders, along with all of the other state contributors.
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ALABAMA (Contributor: Jennifer S. Morgan, Hand Arendall LLC)
BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS
SB87
• This bill would repeal the Alabama Limited Partnership Act of 1997 and enact the Uniform Limited Partnership Act of 2010. The new act would provide greater protection from liability for limited partners, allow the use of a limited partner’s name in the limited partnership’s name, and reduce requirements for dissolution of the limited partnership. It would also require the duration of the partnership to be specified in the certificate of limited partnership.
• 2/3/09- 1st reading and referred to Senate committee on Governmental Affairs
• 2/5/09- 2nd reading
• 3/5/09- 3rd reading passed
• 3/10/09- read for first time in House and referred to House committee on Judiciary
• 3/26/09- 2nd reading in House
ARKANSAS (Contributor: Anton L. Janik, Jr., Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates & Woodyard P.L.L.C.)
IDENTITY OF CONCEALED WEAPONS PERMIT HOLDERS
HB1623
• This bill prohibits the release of the identities or other information concerning concealed handgun licensees.
• 4/8/2009 – Bill has been correctly enrolled and ordered transmitted to the Governor's Office.
IMMIGRATION – STATE REQUIRED IDENTIFICATION
HB1093
• This bill concerns illegal immigration and makes certain acts unlawful. It authorizes state agencies to issue identification documents to certain persons; requires the determination of citizenship status for persons charged with certain offenses; requires state agencies to participate in a status verification system; requires state agencies to verify the lawful presence of persons applying for certain benefits; requires withholding of state income tax under certain circumstances; limits benefits for postsecondary education; to establish a fraudulent documents identification unit within the department of Arkansas State Police; and provides guidelines for resident tuition.
• 4/7/2009 – Recommended for study in the Interim by Joint Interim Committee on Judiciary Committee
PROHIBITION OF DRIVER’S USE OF WIRELESS DEVICE TO TEXT MESSAGE WHILE DRIVING
Act 181/HB1013. Amending Arkansas Code § 27-51-14
• This Act prohibits drivers of motor vehicles from using handheld wireless telephones to engage in text messaging.
• 2/18/2009 – HB1013 signed into law by Governor and is now Act 181.
PROHIBITION OF MINOR’S USE OF WIRELESS DEVICE WHILE DRIVING
Act 247/SB28. Amending Arkansas Code § 27-51-14
• This Act prohibits a driver under the age of eighteen from operating a motor vehicle while using a wireless device.
• 2/26/2009 – SB28 signed into law by Governor and is now Act 247.
PROHIBITION OF USE OF HANDS FREE DEVICES WHILE DRIVING
SB31. Amending Arkansas Code § 27-51-14
• This bill requires a driver of a motor vehicle to use a hands-free cellular telephone device while driving on a public highway. The bill also prescribes certain limitations for the use of a cellular telephone device by the driver of a motor vehicle on a public highway.
• 1/29/2009 – Re-referred to Senate Committee on Transportation, Technology and Legislative Affairs
REGULATION OF PHARMACIES
Act 335/SB120. Amending Arkansas Code § 17-92-101(16)
• This bill clarifies various provisions of the law regarding pharmacists and pharmacies, as well as the regulatory authority of the Arkansas State Board of Pharmacy. Changes include further defining the term pharmacy, and providing civil penalties for the unauthorized practice of pharmacy. The bill also defines the proper practitioner-patient relationship for the Arkansas Internet Prescription Consumer Protection Act.
• 3/11/2009 – SB120 signed into law by Governor and is now Act 355.
USE OF PROTECTIVE HEADGEAR WHILE RIDING MOTORCYCLE
SB29. Amending Arkansas Code § 27-20-104(b),
• This bill requires that all persons who operate or ride on a motorcycle to wear protective headgear, or to carry adequate coverage under a health insurance plan.
• 3/31/2009 – PM Recommended for study in the Interim Committee on Transportation
[MORE]
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Quote of the Week
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Honest differences are often a healthy sign of progress.
—Mahatma Gandhi
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DRI CLE Calendar
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Commercial and Intellectual Property Litigation Symposium
April 22-24, 2009
Wyndham Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
Life, Health, Disability and ERISA
April 22-24, 2009
Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers, New York, New York
Corporate Representative Deposition (webcast)
April 29, 2009
Employment Law
April 30-May 1, 2009
JW Marriott Orlando, Grande Lakes, Orlando, Florida
Electronic Discovery
May 7-8, 2009
Hilton New York, New York, New York
Culture Clash! Data Protection, Freedom of Information and Discovery — How to Protect Your Business in Transnational Disputes
May 13-14, 2009
Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten Kempinski, Munich, Germany
Drug and Medical Device Litigation
May 14-15, 2009
Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers, New York, New York
First Response — Extra-Record Discovery Request Post-Glenn (webcast)
May 20, 2009
Young Lawyers
June 4-5, 2009
Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada
Diversity for Success
June 11-12, 2009
Swissôtel, Chicago, Illinois
Insurance Bad Faith and Extra-Contractual Claims
June 18-19, 2009
Seaport Hotel, Boston, Massachusetts
DRI's National Workers' Compensation Review
August 17-18, 2009
Orlando World Center Marriott, Orlando, Florida
For all other seminars, webconferences and webcasts, click here.
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Unfair Insurance Practices: A Compendium of State Law
Trade Secrets and Agreements Not to Compete
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